


Good Intentions

by Bayheart, Violet_Abilene



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassin Riza, And there's no like described non-con it's just mentioned, Assassin AU, F/F, First thing I've published on AO3 leggo, Same with the gore... kinda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-05
Updated: 2017-07-05
Packaged: 2018-11-23 16:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11405874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bayheart/pseuds/Bayheart, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Violet_Abilene/pseuds/Violet_Abilene
Summary: "I told them that it was an accident-- a little mix-up, a simple mistake on my part, one that simply put my poor lunatic of a father out of his misery. But, Maria, I'm going to let you be the first to know-- those holly berries in my father's tea were no accident. I killed him for all he did to me, and now I'm simply offering the same mercy to you."After her neighbor Maria Ross undergoes something painful, Riza Hawkeye offers to help in the way she helped herself long ago.





	Good Intentions

**Author's Note:**

> Violet_Abilene wrote the beginning of this (like 98% of the life recap bit) as part of an rp, and I did the rest. I haven't published anything publicly since like 2013, so hopefully this will do for some of you other thirsty Mariza shippers. Enjoy!

At 10, her mother passed, taken down by a sudden bought of pneumonia that had become too aggresive too fast.

At 11, her father struck her for the first time, a harsh slap that left a small bruise on her cheek for nearly two weeks. That was really when the abuse and neglect began, and that was when she became an adult much sooner than she should have had to.

At 13, her back was mutilated, burned after her clothes caught fire in what her father would call an "accident" to anyone who asked, but what she knew as a result of his drunken rage. He'd pushed her just close enough to their fireplace to start the fire, and she never forget the searing pain as she slowly recovered in the hospital.

At 14, she started reading up on flora and fauna. She took herself on walks to quiz herself on certain plants, and before she knew it, she could easily identify which ones could kill and which ones were harmless with just one glance.

On the night before her 18th birthday, after years of waiting and plotting and going between feelings of guilt and vengence at what she wanted to do, she mixed in some holly berries into her father's tea. She'd found some growing during one of her walks two years prior. They were tiny red killers; they'd suit her just fine.

The next morning, she walked into her father's room and checked his breathing. Dead; probably been dead at least 6 hours.

Just like that, Riza Hawkeye had killed her first human being.

When she'd called 911 in a panic, it was only somewhat an act. Most of her tears and anxiety came from the realization that she'd just basically murdered her own father, and the extreme guilt she initially felt that nearly made her confess the whole thing.

If anyone suspected Riza, they never said anything about it. Her father's health had been declining for years, anyway, and his mental state wasn't much better. They all chalked it up to an unfortunate accident, a narrative that Riza started being that she'd accidentally mixed up holly berries with wild raspberries. Just an accident, a tragic one, nothing more.

She was able to find a job at a local flower shop not too long after, using her knowledge for a more wholesome purpose, soon moving into a small apartment of her own. However, at 19, about a year after her father's death, she heard that a young woman that lived in her building had been raped by her ex-boyfriend.

Riza happened to know the victim personally-- she was a sweet woman that had only moved here recently with her (not yet ex) boyfriend, and if memory served her correctly, she worked at a retail grocery store. Her name was Maria Ross, and Riza would be lying to say that she didn't wish they could be a little closer acquainted.

They had only spoken a chance few times, their rooms being on the same floor of the apartment complex and all, but in those few times Riza had taken definite note of just how lovely the grocer looked. Besides-- with hair cut that short, she didn't believe she was entirely straight for a second. Not one.

So when this incredibly unfortunate circumstance happened, Riza took it upon herself to make it as incredibly fortunate as could be done given the situation. This is how, the very next day, she found herself standing in front of Maria's apartment door, biting her lip as she gave a hesitant few knocks. There was a long silence, and Riza worried she was being rude by stopping by at the current time, but her own thoughts stopped short when the sound of locks being undone was heard and the door opened slightly.

Riza felt her heart squeeze a bit at the sight of Maria-- the poor woman's eyes were bloodshot and her short locks were ruffled heavily.

"Oh, hello, Riza-- is there, ah... something you need?"

The grocer offered her a weak smile but her eyes remained dull. Riza nodded slowly, still feeling bad for interrupting this obviously emotional time even if her reasons were relatively good.

"Yes, Maria-- I... heard," she swallowed, looking away. She didn't need to specify what, and she was sure saying it aloud would just make Maria uncomfortable. In fact, the dark-haired woman already looked like she wanted to bolt from the conversation, so Riza quickly picked back up with what she was saying.

"Would you... like to come over to my room for some tea? There's... there's something I'd really like to discuss with you."

Maria looked surprised and a little confused. She remained silent for a few moments, contemplating, before giving a slow nod and a small, genuine smile.

"Yeah, I'd... I'd love to. Can you give me a minute to change into something... decent?" She was, after all, wearing fuzzy pajama pants and a sweater.

"Of course," Riza said, giving a warm little smile before Maria returned it and closeed her door. She thought about going back to her apartment to wait, but realized that Maria probably didn't want to be alone anywhere outside of her home and decided against it.

The blonde instead took a place against the wall by the door to wait, counting the doors down the hallway. It wasn't long before the apartment door opened again and Maria came out, wearing some sweatpants and a t-shirt. Riza smiled and walked her to her apartment without another word.

Riza unlocked the door and lead them both inside before closing and locking it again.

"Have a seat, Ross-- I'll go make some tea. Are you alright with chamomile?" It was the best for stress relief, after all-- and any insomnia the woman may possibly have.

"Thank you; and chamomile is fine with me."

Riza hummed in acknowledgement and set off to make the tea, occasionally glancing at her guest while waiting. The poor thing looked exhausted and drained beyond belief. It wasn't like her-- Maria was always upbeat and a bit of a jokester, not... this.

The tea was ready soon enough, and Riza poured it into two of her favorite mugs for the occasion before bringing it to the couch and sitting down beside Maria. She offered her a mug with a smile and was glad to see Maria return the expression with at least a little genuineness.

"So... your... ex is the culprit? Colby, was it?"

Riza kept her voice soft as to make the topic as easy on Maria as possible. The woman still tensed a bit, but soon nodded before focusing on blowing the steam from her tea.

"And... are they going to be able to take him to court over it or anything? Or..."

Maria was again silent, and with downcast eyes gave a slow shake of her head. Riza was admittedly appalled. "But he--"

"His parents are both lawyers. I... I don't think there's anything I could do. They're the type of parents that think he can do no wrong, you know? I wouldn't stand a chance in court against him. Besides, I..." she swallowed, watching the rippling liquid in her mug as a distraction, "...I don't think I could handle looking at his face one more time."

Riza frowned at this. The grocer, unfortunately, has a point. She would stand little chance winning against him in court given the circumstances.

But that just made what she was planning to offer even better of a deal.

"In that case... I believe I'll cut to the chase of why I asked you here."

Riza sighed and took a small sip of her tea before setting it down on the coffee table. This was going to be tricky. If Maria got startled, she may have to resort to... drastic measures, as much as the thought chilled her. At least she had the grocer's attention now.

"When I was little, my... my mother died from pneumonia. My father didn't take it well and-- for the remaining years I was under his roof, he... beat me. He would get drunk on odd occasions, and while he never did anything to violate me, he did... leave a few marks."

She thought of the burn scar that stretches the canvas of her back into numb, faded blisters but didn't elaborate any further. Maria was looking concerned-- this was good, at least.

"I started reading up on plant life-- berries, specifically, since I lived by a forest. I could put wild raspberries in his tea and pick blueberries for pastries. The intention was innocent. But then, one day, I... ended up putting holly berries into his tea instead of the raspberries. He died in the night, and afterwards I moved out here and got the job I have now over at the florist."

Riza suddenly lifted her head to meet Maria's gaze fiercely. The grocer was noticeably startled and her blue eyes widened, whether from sympathy or surprise Riza couldn't tell.

"I told them that it was an accident-- a little mix-up, a simple mistake on my part, one that simply put my poor lunatic of a father out of his misery. But, Maria, I'm going to let you be the first to know-- those holly berries in my father's tea were no accident. I killed him for all he did to me, and now I'm simply offering the same mercy to you."

Maria looked... mostly scared. Not quite terrified, but definitely no longer somber. She was tense and looked ready to run at any given moment, but somehow managed to keep her place sitting on the couch. Riza was thankful.

"Offer me the... _what?_ What _mercy,_ I don't-- you killed your own _father,_ Riza, what does that have to do with--"

Riza could see it in her face when it clicked. The slightly accusatory look went carefully blank within a moment's notice and realization stretched the whole of her features.

"You... you're offering to-- to _kill_ Colby?"

A solemn nod from Riza. She reached over to pick up her tea and took a sip from it, not needing to look at Maria to see the conflict on her face.

"B--but you... he-- _why?_ Why would you... I mean what he did was _wrong,_ but..."

Riza put her tea back down and took one of the woman's clenched hands into her own. She couldn't suppress a shiver at the contact-- not just from how cold she was, but the fact that she still considered Maria quite the beautiful individual as well. The florist met Maria's gaze and held it, making sure she conveyed her honesty and good intentions as best she could through nonverbal means.

"Maria, listen to me. What he did to you? It's _unforgivable._ You're going to be denied even having a legal victory over him, right? That amounts to no victory at all the way I see it. What I'm trying to offer you... it's a way you can still have at least one victory. You can have the last say in this, Maria. You can make him pay for the horrible thing he did to you and-- and never, yourself, have to be held accountable for it."

Maria still looked conflicted, so Riza tilted her head slightly and gave her a soft look.

"I want to help you, Maria. I want to get rid of the person that defiled you and make the world a better place, even if it is only by ridding it of one bad person. I... there isn't a day that goes by that I regret what I did to my father. It's freeing. He has no control over me now, you know? I... I want you to be able to have that freedom, too."

At some point in those words, Maria started crying. Her watery blue eyes had never left Riza's for a second, though, and past the tears Riza could almost swear she saw the familiar light that had been absent just earlier. The grocer sniffled, wiped her tears away, and gave a firm nod, eyes meeting Riza's easily.

"You're-- you're right, Riza. I... I don't want him to have that over me for the rest of my life."

Riza smiled at the determination in her tone. "If you really want to go through with this, you can just tell me where he lives, and-- how you would like him to be eliminated. I'll do what I can-- _whatever_ I can to get rid of him."

Maria thought for a few moments.

"I don't care how you kill him. Just-- whatever you do, make sure to be sneaky as hell, yeah? Lawyer parents and all. They'll scope you out easy. He lives a few blocks down now, 103 Parkson Street. Big house with a white roof, can't miss it."

Riza found a notepad on her coffee table and jotted down the information, looking back up at the still somewhat nervous woman.

"Alright, Maria. I'll take care of it. And... you should probably finish your tea before it gets frigid."

The woman seemed to suddenly remember she had a mug in her hand, and was quick to pick it up and take a few swallows from the now lukewarm drink. It seemed to calm her down. Riza even followed suit, enjoying the mild warmth of the tea as she pondered on the warmth inside of her. Yes, she was going to kill a man. But for what the man had done? He deserved it. She was going to be helping someone-- someone _innocent,_ by doing it.

Riza noticed that Maria had finished her tea pretty soon along with herself. She smiled and gently took the mug from her hold, taking both of the empty mugs to the kitchen and putting them into the sink to wash later. Then she walked back to the main room and rested a hand on Maria's shoulder.

"Would you like for me to walk you back?"

The two women were soon standing at Maria's apartment door as the taller of the two unlocked it, stepping one foot inside before pausing. She then turned to look back at Riza, holding up one finger in the 'wait' motion.

"Hey, stay there for a second, okay? I'll be right back."

Riza was confused but stayed put nonetheless, not having to wait long before Maria returned. The grocer picked up a hand and opened her fingers, pressing something into her palm before closing them back and looking up at the blonde. Riza looked down at what she had been given and was surprised to see... money? Why was she giving her that?

The florist raised a brow and met Maria's gaze, moving her hand forward to insist she take back her offer. "Maria, I'm doing this for _you,_ not for money, why would you--"

"Just take it, Riza. I _insist._ I know it isn't much-- I'm still not used to Colby not splitting the pay for the apartment with me-- but what you're doing? I'd feel horrible for not giving you anything. Besides, never know when there'll be an expense, yeah?"

Riza contemplated for a few moments before reluctantly withdrawing her hand, deciding not to see how much she had been given right now.

"If... you say so, Ross."

"Well I do, so there. Just... thank you, yeah? I'll talk to you tomorrow. Good luck-- and goodnight."

"...Goodnight, then, Maria. Sleep well."

Maria offered her a smile; a genuine, thankful smile, before retreating back into her room, closing and locking the door behind her. Riza stood there for a few moments. Then she smiled softly and turned to head back to her own room. She had planning to do.

It was a few days later that Colby was discovered in his home in a puddle of his own blood, the only traces of anyone else having ever been there being the bullet that had gone directly through his heart... and the distinct bloody absence of a lower appendage. Riza had found it fitting to destroy in him what he had destroyed in Maria, no matter how metaphorical.

That was the start of a promising career for Riza-- one as an assassin. It paid well, and it allowed her to, even if only person by horrible person, change the world for the better.

And if it had been started by trying to help the cute woman a few doors down, then that was only one of the many pros.

**Author's Note:**

> Shout-out to that one post on tumblr with the prompt with which this AU was born because damn is it a good AU! And also again to Violet_Abilene because we have been working together on this AU and I love both her and this good content. And if Riza is any bit OOC, then that's actually covered-- we decided that since she isn't a veteran her personality is probably a bit different. We call her Soft Riza. You're welcome.


End file.
